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Cairo wants to be seat of North African force
TRIPOLI, Libya -- Egypt is proposing Cairo as the seat and administrative base of a North African force agreed upon at a recent meeting by army chiefs of five countries. Egyptian Assistant Minister of Defense Maj. Gen. Mamdouh Abdel Hak made the proposal at a two-day meeting in Libya by the chiefs of staff of Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt and the Republic of Western Sahara.
The five North African states agreed to set up a "Standby African Force" in line with the resolutions of the African Union. Egypt went further, proposing to place "its military training facilities at the disposal of the force within the framework of peacekeeping in the area," Abdel Hak was quoted as saying.
| "We want it under our thumb at all times!" |
The joint force will be operating under the supervision of the Council for Peace and Security of the African Union. The chiefs of staff who signed a memorandum of understanding defined the objectives of the joint force as keeping peace and security in their area and depending entirely on African resources in the fields of defense and security.
There was no information about the size or armament of the force that will include in its structure an executive secretariat, a department for planning, a general command, and two administrative bases.
| Everything you need for a military command. Except soldiers. And equipment. And logistics. And intel. But they got everything else, by gum! |
According to a strategy adopted by the African Union to build a united Africa by 2030, the organization divided the black continent into five provinces -- the north, south, east, west and center. Each province was entrusted with the mission of setting up a joint force in accordance with the bylaws of the Union's Council for Peace and Security.
The various provincial standby forces will have permission to interfere at any time to settle conflicts between states as well as internal conflicts. According to the Council's bylaws, the forces will interfere only if the committee of arbitrators affiliated with the Council fails to settle conflicts.
Libyan Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Ahmed Aoun underscored the need to boost collective action for achieving the aspired objectives of the African Union. He noted that "a main objective of the force is to ensure a permanent stability and security for the present leaders of the countries involved. "The issue of security was and still is a priority at the national, regional and continental levels and the aim is to make the African continent a region of peace and stability, free from pressures and threats," Aoun was quoted as saying. "We still have a great deal of serious and continued work ahead which necessitates absolute commitment to our goals and aspirations," he said.
| Like, for example, build something. |
Posted by: Steve White 2005-11-22 |
